The present invention relates to a preparatory machine for recycling.
Plastics is the most common material being used for industrial products. It is used in a wide variety of products for its light-in-weight property and durability. As a result, plastic waste is large in amount and causes a serious problem of environmental protection. In order to reduce the cost of material and mitigate environmental pollution, it is desired that the plastic waste can be recycled. However, certain procedures need to be taken before recycling.
Generally, the plastic waste needs to be cut or crushed into pieces. The pieces of plastic waste are then plunged in a big pool of water for cleaning purpose. In order to thoroughly clean the pieces of plastic waste, sulfuric or certain chemicals needs to be added to water to help removing residue from the pieces of plastic waste. The processed pieces of plastic waste need to be washed with water to clean out the sulfuric or certain chemicals. The washed pieces of plastic waste need to be dried. The dried pieces of plastic waste are collected for further processes.
Conventionally, after being washed with water, to which sulfuric or certain chemicals is added, the pieces of plastic waste are taken out of the pool and washed with water by human labors. The washed pieces of plastic waste are carried to a drying machine by human labors, too. There is a potential danger that human body might touch the sulfuric or certain chemicals and get hurt. Manual way of processing also limits the speed of processing of plastic waste.
Referring to FIG. 6, a conventional preparatory machine 5 has a conveyor tube which has an inlet 51 and an outlet. The washed pieces of plastic waste are input through the inlet 51 into the conveyor tube. A conveyor screw 52 which is driven by a motor through a pulley conveys the pieces and moves the pieces out of the conveyor tube through the outlet. The pieces fall on an inner surface of a cylinder which is formed with a plurality of apertures 50. The apertured cylinder is attached to a pulley. A motor drives 15 the pulley through a belt, thereby rotating the apertured cylinder, thereby drying the pieces. Two plates 53 are fixed to an outer surface of the conveyor tube. A slot 55 are formed below the plates 53. The dried pieces of plastic waste are directed to a chamber 56. The dried pieces of plastic waste then fall down through an opening 57 to a collector tank 58. Waste water is collected by an outer cylinder 6 and directed out through a hole 61 and a pipe 62.